When meat is cooked in a barbecue grill over charcoal briquets, the juices of the meat drip onto the hot briquets and are vaporized. As a result of this process, a desirable smoked flavor is imparted to the meat.
Gas barbecue grills duplicate this flavoring effect. A commonly used type of gas barbecue uses lava rocks or other porous objects between the burner and the meat to serve the same purpose as the charcoal briquets. However, as with charcoal briquets, grease from the meat accumulates on the porous rocks and ignites when it reaches its flash temperature. The resulting flame burns the meat and interferes with the preferred slower cooking process.
Prior patents show attempts to develop a gas barbecue which uses a metal plate instead of lava rocks to radiate the heat from the burner. In these grills, a metal plate is placed within the barbecue grill above the burners and below the grate which supports the meat. A single horizontal metal plate extends over the entire burner. The plate usually has a contoured upper surface which may be generally similar in appearance to charcoal briquets. During the cooking process, juices of the meat drip down onto the hot plate, are vaporized, and impart the desired smoked flavor to the meat. Although the plate imparts the desired smoked flavor, it does not solve the flaming problem. Grease tends to pool on the plate and ignite when it reaches its flash temperature. When the grease is ignited, the resulting flames burn the meat.